Yep. It’s all about simple, nourishing soups this season and bolstering ourselves like a crocus for a spring awakening. Soup, however, can be fresh, vibrant and vivid, it can be dressed to impress and it can be partnered by more exciting accompaniments than a hunk of bread or a roll (nowt wrong with good bread though!).

Here is a great one for flavour and vibrancy, cut through with caraway and garlic and toasty with almonds, and accompanied by our utility crispy carrot and spud hash cakes. These are not just for soup dunking but are as versatile as your imagination. For breakfast say, such as this little plate with a perfect poached egg and a zingy fresh tomato, red onion, lime and coriander salsa.

Layer them up with mackerel, flat leaf parsley and buttered leek, or spice them up with some coriander, turmeric, cumin and mustard seed and pair with our tomato and garlic or coconut chutney for a tidy little snack or light dinner

Method

1 First prepare your tattie cake mix. Boil your spuds in their skins until they take the point of a knife with ease. Set them aside to dry a little while you clean your carrots. Again no need to remove the skins, a top and tail and a quick scrub in cold water will do it

2 Pass your potatoes and carrots through the ricer / grater of your food processor. Empty onto a clean towel and toss together with a good pinch of salt. Wrap in the towel and leave to sit for half an hour while the salt draws out the moisture. Lift in the towel and squeeze out the water into the sink. Set aside to dry further while you get the soup going

3 Preheat your oven to gas 7 / 220 c / 200 fan. Cut the hard nubs from your garlic cloves and add to a roasting dish with your chopped leek, onion, celery stalks, caraway and nigella seeds. Add a good splash of rapeseed oil to coat and season with salt. Roast in the oven for 20 minutes

4 Remove your roasting dish from the oven and spoon into a deep saucepan. Add your bouillon and cover with water / add your fresh stock and bring up to a simmer. Tumble in a handful of dried basmati rice. This will give a great, creamy texture to your soup

5 When the rice has cooked in the soup add your flat leaf parsley and celery leaves and blitz your soup with a hand blender until smooth. Add a little water to the desired texture if required. Taste and season with sea salt and black pepper accordingly before turning the heat down to minimum

7 Add a tbsp of ghee to the hot pan. Wring out your carrots and spuds again and remove to a bowl add your dried parsley with a splash of olive oil and incorporate into the mix which should now be starchy and elastic

8 Form your hash mix into balls and squash with a spoon into the hot pan. Fry until crisp and coloured on one side and then turn for the same on the other before removing